Good morning everyone and happy Thursday. I have a day off today which I’m really looking forward to as it was a busy day at the shop yesterday. I’d normally be going into the school to hear kids read this afternoon but my eldest was sick last night so he won’t be going into school today.

This book came into the shop this week and I immediately put it aside as I knew I had to buy it. I’ve been hearing lots of good things about this book on here so I’ve been intrigued by this book for a while.

What book has other book bloggers made you buy?

Book Synopsis:

A propulsive, seductive new novel about friendship, exploitation and intimacy from the prize-winning author of Where Reasons End

Fabienne is dead. Her childhood best friend, Agnès, receives the news in America, far from the French countryside where the two girls were raised – the place that Fabienne helped Agnès escape ten years ago. Now, Agnès is free to tell her story.

As children in a backwater town, they’d built a private world, invisible to everyone but themselves – until Fabienne hatched the plan that would change everything, launching Agnès on an epic trajectory through fame, fortune, and terrible loss.

A dark, ravishing tale winding from the rural provinces to Paris, from an English boarding school, to the quiet Pennsylvania home where Agnès can live without her past. The Book of Goose is a story of intimacy and obsession, friendship and rivalry perfect for fans of Elena Ferrante, Ottessa Moshfegh and Kamila Shamsie.

About The Author:

Yiyun Li is the author of ten books, including Where Reasons End, which received the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award; the essay collection Dear Friend, from My Life I Write to You in Your Life; and the novels The Vagrants and Must I Go. She is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, Guggenheim Fellowship, and Windham-Campbell Prize, among other honors. A contributing editor to A Public Space, she teaches at Princeton University.

Book Synopsis:

“No surrender. No retreat.” With twenty enemy swords at their backs and a broken bridge ahead, the last knights of an outlaw order turn to fight. A young woman with forbidden magic joins their final stand. And as blade meets blade, she starts to sing…

Adelais was raised in the far north, learning stories of the old gods and the skill of weaving runes into magic. Now, she is locked in a convent far from home, forced to kneel to a foreign god.

When inquisitors arrive with plans to torture an innocent man, Adelais cannot stand by. She aids an attack to free the prisoner and joins the raiders as they flee into the night.

Her new companions are the last of the Guardians—once a powerful holy order, now ragged fugitives, hunted almost to extinction.

The knights carry a secret treasure, precious and powerful enough to shape kingdoms. Their pursuers, desperate to possess it, will crush any who stand in their way.

Nowhere is safe—in city or chateau, on the road or in the wilds. And even disguised as a boy, Adelais draws attention wherever she goes. Is she angel or demon, priestess or witch?

Adelais must summon all her courage and all her memories of the old gods’ magic as the noose tightens around her and a thunderous final reckoning approaches.

Discover a thrilling new series, with a rich world and action that will leave you breathless. Hammer of Fate is inspired by Viking magic, medieval combat and the fall of the Templar knights—perfect for fans of Mark Lawrence, Andrzej Sapkowski and Robin Hobb.

My Review:

Hammer Of Fate is an absorbing, thrilling book that’s the start of an exciting new fantasy series.

The story is told from the point of view of three characters who I enjoyed following throughout the book. Adelais was a great main character who I really liked. She’s refreshing normal as she’s not billed as being special or different which made a nice change. She’s a very brave lady who manages to be both impetuous and stubborn but caring at the same time.

The story starts of slowly as the author sets the scene but soon gets very gripping as the three main characters join together in their quest. I thought this book had a bit of everything in it including lots of danger and some intense battle scenes. I loved the world the author has created, which is based on the Viking period, with some of the characters being based on real life historical characters.

This is the first book in the Rune Song Trilogy and I’m now very excited to read more now.

Huge thanks to Second Sky Books for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

G.N. Gudgion (‘Geoff’) grew up with his nose in a book, often one featuring knights in armour. A later search for stories where women didn’t have to be either beautiful damsels or witches led him to the fantasy genre and the works of Guy Gavriel Kay and Mark Lawrence.

After Geoff gave up a business career to write, it was natural to gravitate to historical fantasy, to stories with complex, conflicted characters that a reader can bleed with, cry for, and perhaps fall in love with. They live in worlds where you can smell the sweat and the sewers, as well as the roses.

Geoff lives in a leafy corner of England, where he’s a keen amateur equestrian and a very bad pianist. He spends much of his time crafting words in a shed, fifty yards and five hundred years from his house.

He is also the author, as Geoffrey Gudgion, of supernatural thrillers Saxon’s Bane (Solaris, 2020) and Draca (Unbound, 2020)

Book Synopsis:

For Alice and her partner Joe, moving to the sleepy Cotswold village of Penton is a chance to embrace country life and prepare for the birth of their unexpected first child. He can take up woodwork; maybe she’ll learn to make jam. But the rural idyll they’d hoped for doesn’t quite pan out when a dead body is discovered at their local antenatal class and they find themselves suspects in a murder investigation.

With a cloud of suspicion hanging over the heads of the whole group, Alice sets out to solve the mystery and clear her name, with the help of her troublesome dog, Helen. However, there are more secrets and tensions in the heart of Penton than first meet the eye. Between the discovery of a shady commune up in the woods, the unearthing of a mysterious death years earlier and the near-tragic poisoning of Helen, Alice is soon in way over her head.

CAN YOU SOLVE THE MOTHER OF ALL MURDERS?

My Review:

The Expectant Detectives is a lovely, light hearted and funny read that I really enjoyed.

Firstly I loved the fantastic characters the author has created and enjoyed following them throughout the book. They were such real, relatable characters that reminded me a bit of myself when I was pregnant with my eldest. It was very interesting to follow them from not trusting each other to having a lovely friendship group.

The story starts off slow as the author sets the scene but soon becomes very addictive. I wasn’t sure how it would work with having pregnant detectives but I needn’t have worried as it actually helped create some very funny moments that had me laughing out loud. There were lots of twists that kept me guessing and I found it fun to try to solve the case alongside the characters.

The ending was brilliant, especially as I wasn’t able to guess who the murderer was which I always love. I’m hoping there will be a sequel as I’d love to spend some more times with the characters, though it might be interesting to follow them trying to be detectives with newborns or toddlers .

Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publisher for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

KAT AILES works in publishing as an editor and freelanced for several years to allow her to take a couple of belated gap years, including hiking the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada. She now lives in the Cotswolds with her lovely husband, their young son and her beautiful but foolish dog. The Expectant Detectives is her debut novel, the first draft of which was written largely (and frantically) in three weeks after she submitted the first few chapters to the Comedy Women in Print Prize and was unexpectedly shortlisted.

Book Synopsis:

The brilliant new novel from award-winning writer and rising star Claire Askew.

A city that’s no longer safe…
An anonymous vigilante stalks the streets of Edinburgh. As his behaviour escalates, the police are at a loss – they can find no clues to his identity, and no trace of his whereabouts.

A detective in the path of danger…
DI Helen Birch has been told to stay away from the case – but she’s never been one to play by the rules. When her colleague Amy comes to her asking for help, DI Birch finds it impossible to resist the challenge – and soon, her life is on the line.
Will she crack the case before it breaks her? Or has she finally met her match?
A gripping crime thriller for fans of Susie Steiner, Elly Griffiths and Val McDermid – guaranteed to keep you up all night…

My Review:

The Dead Don’t Speak is another fantastically gripping addition to one of my favourite crime series.

Firstly it was great to be back with Helen, helping her to solve another mystery. This time we join a very different Helen to the one we’re used to due to the injury she picked up at the end of the last book, which she’s not coping very well with. Her inability to deal with the restrictions of her injury helped lead to some of the lighter moments in the book, especially when it’s winds up her ever tolerant team.

I felt the pace was a bit slower than in other books but I didn’t mind that as it was fun to just hang out with Helen, her team and her dad who I absolutely loved. There are some quite intense, gritty moments in this book which might not be to everyone’s taste but I didn’t think it was over done and helped contribute to a lot of the tension in the book.

The tension slowly increases as the story goes on and there were lots of twists and surprises that kept me guessing. The ending was brilliant and I’m excited to read more installments in this series – though hopefully with a fully healed Helen.

Huge thanks to Alainna Georgiou for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Hodder for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Claire Askew is the author of the Edinburgh-set DI Birch crime fiction series, published by Hodder & Stoughton. ALL THE HIDDEN TRUTHS (2018) won the 2016 Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize as a work in progress, and the 2019 Bloody Scotland Crime Debut Prize. It was also shortlisted for the CWA John Creasy Debut Dagger and the CWA Gold Dagger in 2019. The follow-up, WHAT YOU PAY FOR (2019), was also shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger in 2020. COVER YOUR TRACKS, the third book in the series, was published in 2020, and book four, A MATTER OF TIME (2022) was longlisted for the 2022 McIlvanney Prize. Claire is also a poet, and the author of THIS CHANGES THINGS (2016) and HOW TO BURN A WOMAN (2021), both published by Bloodaxe Books. Her non fiction book NOVELISTA: ANYONE CAN WRITE A NOVEL – YES, EVEN YOU was published by John Murray in 2020. Claire has been a Jessie Kesson Fellow, a Hawthornden Fellow, and Writer in Residence at the University of Edinburgh.

Good morning everyone and Happy Monday. Half term seems to have gone too quickly and the kids are back to school today.

This is some of the fantastic book post I’ve received recently, which you can find out a bit more about down below.

⭐Banyan Moon by Thao Thai
⭐The Villa by Ruth Kelly
⭐The Black Crescent by Jane Johnson

These all sounds fantastic and I’m looking forward to reading them all soon. Huge thanks to all the tagged publishers.

Today I’m working this afternoon so I’m hoping to get some reading done this morning and to buy some new flowers as all of mine have died. The kids are going to late birds at school for the first time but they’re really excited as they get to have toast there. I have pointed out I could do them toast here but apparently it’s not the same…

Hope you have a great Monday everyone.

The Black Crescent by Jane Johnson

Bringing 1950s Morocco vividly to life, Jane Johnson’s masterful new novel, The Black Crescent, is a gripping story of murder, magic and divided loyalties…

Hamou Badi is born in a mountain village with the magical signs of the zouhry on his hands. In Morocco, the zouhry is a figure of legend, a child of both humans and djinns, capable of finding all manner of treasure: lost objects, hidden water.

But instead, Hamou finds a body.

This unsolved murder instils in Hamou a deep desire for order and justice: he trains as an officer of the law, working for the French in Casablanca. But the city is trapped in the turmoil of the nationalist uprising, and soon he will be forced to choose between all he knows and all he loves…

The Villa by Ruth Kelly

A Villa in Paradise

It’s destined to be the ultimate reality TV show. Ten contestants. A luxurious villa on a private island. Every moment streamed live to a global audience who have total control over those competing for the cash prize.

A Journalist Undercover

Reporter Laura is told to get the inside scoop on her fellow contestants. But once the games begin, she soon finds herself at the mercy of a ruthless producer willing to do anything to increase viewer numbers.

A Reality Show to Die For

There is more to every contestant than meets the eye, including Laura. They all have secrets they’d like to keep buried, and the pressure in paradise quickly reaches boiling point. How far will the contestants go to secure audience votes? And would somebody really kill to win?

Banyan Moon by Thao Thai

A sweeping, evocative debut novel following three generations of Vietnamese American women reeling from the death of their matriarch, revealing the family’s inherited burdens and buried secrets.

When Ann Tran gets the call that her beloved grandmother, Minh, has passed away, her life is already at a crossroads. Ann has built a seemingly perfect life. She lives in a beautiful lake house and has a charming professor boyfriend, but it all crumbles away with one positive pregnancy test.

With both her relationship and carefully planned future now in question, Ann returns home to Florida to face her estranged mother, Hu’o’ng. Under the same roof for the first time in years, mother and daughter must face the simmering questions of their past, while trying to rebuild their relationship without the one person who’s always held them together.

Running parallel to this is Minh’s story, as she goes from a lovestruck teenager living in the shadow of the Vietnam War to a determined young mother immigrating to America in search of a better life. And when Ann makes a shocking discovery in the Banyan House’s attic, long-buried secrets come to light as it becomes clear how decisions Minh made in her youth affected the rest of her life and her family.

Spanning decades and continents, from 1960s Vietnam to the wild swamplands of the Florida coast, Banyan Moon is a stunning and deeply moving story of mothers and daughters, the things we inherit, and the lives we choose to make out of that inheritance.

I’ve been seeing this challenge around Instagram and I thought I’d try and join in. It’s originally the brain child of @cathy_746books I believe so do join in if you’d like.

These are the 20 books I’d like to read this summer. I’m a bit of a mood reader so I’m not going to guarantee I’ll read all these but I’m going to give it a good go!

⭐The Vintage Shop Of Second Chances by Libby Page

⭐The Illusionist by Liz Hyder

⭐ Conviction by Jack Jordan

⭐ Still Life by Sarah Winman

⭐ Mother’s Boy by Patrick Gale

⭐Bad Men by Julie Mae Cohen

⭐The Witching Tide by Margaret Meyer

⭐Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice For Murderers by Jess Sutanto

⭐Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score

⭐The Secrets Of Rochester Place by Iris Costello

⭐ Death Of A Bookseller by Alice Slater

⭐A Killer In The Family by Gytha Lodge

⭐ Yellowface by Rebecca F Kuang

⭐ Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

⭐ Fyneshade by Kate Griffin

⭐ The Memory Of Animals by Clare Fuller

⭐One Puzzling Afternoon by Emily Critchley

⭐The Girl With The Red Hair by Buzzy Jackson

⭐ Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman

⭐More Confessions Of A Forty Something F##k Up by Alexander Potter

Of course as soon as I took this picture I remembered a few books that I wanted to include, like Our Hideous Progeny, and hadn’t so I might swop a few later on.

Have you read any of these? Which book should I start with?

Book Synopsis:

With a love story at its heart, The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone weaves multiple periods and perspectives into a charming, magical story about a mystical dolls’ house. A beautiful, unforgettable mystery from debut author Audrey Burges.

Once upon a time there was a house . . .

From her attic in the Arizona mountains, thirty-four year-old recluse Myra Malone blogs about a miniature mansion – a dolls’ house – which captivates thousands of readers worldwide. Myra herself is tethered to the Mansion by a strange magic she can’t understand – there are rooms that appear and disappear overnight, music that plays in its corridors.

Across the country, Alex Rakes, the thirty-four year-old heir of a furniture business, encounters two Mansion fans trying to recreate a room from her stories. Alex is shocked to recognize his own bedroom in minute scale.

The Mansion is his family’s home, handed down from the grandmother who disappeared mysteriously when Alex was a child. Searching for answers, Alex begins corresponding with Myra. Together, the two unwind the lonely paths of their twin worlds – big and small – and trace the stories that entwine them, setting the stage for a meeting rooted in loss, but defined by love.

My Review:

Ooh i did love this book. It was just what I needed to get me out of the small reading slump I’d got into.

Firstly I loved the fabulous descriptions of the mansion and enjoyed exploring it alongside the characters. I’ve always wanted a dolls house like it so I loved reading about all the little things Myra makes for the house and how she makes them. The house seems both magical and a little sinister with whole rooms appearing and disappearing at times. It made me wonder what the house was really about and how it would fit into the story.

The story is told through multiple narrators and moves back and forth in time as the reader learns more about the history of the miniature mansion. I really liked this as it was fun to find out more about the mansion and get to know the characters more. I loved Myra and Alex, especially as they both seem quite quirky which I always love. It was heartwarming to see the similarities between them and how they could help each other.

The story starts off slowly as the author sets the scene but I soon found myself completely absorbed in the story. I loved the magical elements of the story and found myself wishing I could explore the mansion for myself. The gradual unfolding of the mystery surrounding the house was well done and I liked that the ending wasn’t over explained with the author leaving some of the explanations to the readers imagination.

Huge thanks to Chloe for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publisher for my copy of this book. If you’re a fan of magical books I highly recommend this one.

About The Author:

Audrey writes novels, humor, short fiction, and essays in Richmond, Virginia. Her presence is tolerated by her two rambunctious children and very patient husband, all of whom have become practiced at making supportive faces when she shouts “listen to this sentence!” She is a frequent contributor to numerous humor outlets, including McSweeney’s, and her stories and essays have appeared in Pithead Chapel, Cease, Cows, and lengthy diatribes in the Notes app on her phone. Audrey was born and raised in Arizona by her linguist parents, which is a lot like being raised by wolves, but with better grammar. She moved to Virginia as an adult but still carries mountains and canyons in her heart, and sometimes, when she closes her eyes, she can still smell ponderosa pines in the sun. You can read more of her writing at audreyburges.com and by following her on Twitter at @audrey_burges, on Instagram at @audreyburges, or on Facebook at @aburgeswrites.

Good morning everyone and happy Friday! I bought myself a copy of Fyneshade after seeing all the amazing reviews on here and it’s finally arrived. It’s so beautiful. I absolutely love the cover and each section has some beautiful artwork on it – plus it’s signed which I wasn’t expecting but always love. I can’t wait to read it soon.

In other news my kids are back today which I’m so happy about as I’ve missed them loads plus I feel better so good news all around!

Do you like gothic novels? Any recommendations?

Book Synopsis:

On the day of her beloved grandmother’s funeral, Marta discovers that she is to become governess to the young daughter of Sir William Pritchard. Separated from her lover and discarded by her family, Marta has no choice but to journey to Pritchard’s ancient and crumbling house, Fyneshade, in the wilds of Derbyshire.

All is not well at Fyneshade. Marta’s pupil, little Grace, can be taught nothing, and Marta takes no comfort from the silent servants who will not meet her eye. More intriguing is that Sir William is mysteriously absent, and his son and heir Vaughan is forbidden to enter the house. Marta finds herself drawn to Vaughan, despite the warnings of the housekeeper that he is a danger to all around him. But Marta is no innocent to be preyed upon. Guided by the dark gift taught to her by her grandmother, she has made her own plans. And it will take more than a family riven by murderous secrets to stop her…

Perfect for readers of Laura Purcell, Jessie Burton and Stacey Halls, Fyneshade is a dark and twisted gothic novel unlike any you’ve read before….

About The Author:

Kate Griffin was born within the sound of Bow bells, making her a true-born cockney. She has worked as an assistant to an antiques dealer, a journalist for local newspapers and now works for The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. Kitty Peck and the Music Hall Murders, Kate’s first book, won the Stylist/Faber crime writing competition. Kate lives in St Albans.

Book Synopsis:

On a winter’s night in 1892, Kate Williams, the daughter of a Baptist Minister, leaves Abergavenny and sets out for London with a wild plan: she is going to become a strongwoman.

But it is not only her ambition she is chasing. William Roberts, the leader of a music hall troupe, has captured her imagination and her heart. In London, William reinvents Kate as ‘Vulcana – Most Beautiful Woman on Earth’, and himself ‘Atlas’. Soon they are performing in Britain, France, Australia and Algiers.

But as Vulcana’s star rises, Altas’ fades, and Kate finds herself holding together a troupe of performers and a family. Kate is a woman driven by love – for William, her children, performing and for life. Can she find a way to be a voice for women and true to herself?

My Review:

Vulcana is an atmospheric, absorbing read that I really enjoyed.

Firstly I absolutely loved Vulcana and enjoyed following her throughout the book. She’s a strong, confident lady, who knows what she want and I really admired her having the strength to go against the times to achieve it. I thought she was very inspiring and I liked that she wanted to help other women realise the joy of weight lifting.

The author has obviously done a lot of research and I enjoyed learning more about the period, especially all the little details the author includes in the story. Some of the details, like the ice skating on the Thames at the beginning, made me smile as I could really picture it in my mind. It was also interesting to learn more about the music halls and what it was like to work in one as I’ve only really read about them in passing before. It’s definitely a place that I’d like to experience for myself, though in the audience as I’m not sure I’d be brave enough for the stage.

The book has a good pace to it and there always seemed to be something happening to keep my interest. I loved the bird’s eye view of life in that period and felt fully absorbed into Vulcana’s life. Vulcana and William are real life characters and I found it very interesting to be able to Google them and find out more about them.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publisher for my copy of this book. If you’re a fan of historical fiction I highly recommend this book.

About The Author:

Rebecca F. John was born in 1986 and grew up on the south Wales coast. Her short stories have been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 4Extra. In 2015, her short story ‘The Glove Maker’s Numbers’ was shortlisted for the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award. She is the winner of the PEN International New Voices Award 2015. Her debut novel, The Haunting of Henry Twist, was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award. She lives in Swansea.

Book Synopsis:

On a winter’s night in 1892, Kate Williams, the daughter of a Baptist Minister, leaves Abergavenny and sets out for London with a wild plan: she is going to become a strongwoman.

But it is not only her ambition she is chasing. William Roberts, the leader of a music hall troupe, has captured her imagination and her heart. In London, William reinvents Kate as ‘Vulcana – Most Beautiful Woman on Earth’, and himself ‘Atlas’. Soon they are performing in Britain, France, Australia and Algiers.

But as Vulcana’s star rises, Altas’ fades, and Kate finds herself holding together a troupe of performers and a family. Kate is a woman driven by love – for William, her children, performing and for life. Can she find a way to be a voice for women and true to herself?

My Review:

Vulcana is an atmospheric, absorbing read that I really enjoyed.

Firstly I absolutely loved Vulcana and enjoyed following her throughout the book. She’s a strong, confident lady, who knows what she want and I really admired her having the strength to go against the times to achieve it. I thought she was very inspiring and I liked that she wanted to help other women realise the joy of weight lifting.

The author has obviously done a lot of research and I enjoyed learning more about the period, especially all the little details the author includes in the story. Some of the details, like the ice skating on the Thames at the beginning, made me smile as I could really picture it in my mind. It was also interesting to learn more about the music halls and what it was like to work in one as I’ve only really read about them in passing before. It’s definitely a place that I’d like to experience for myself, though in the audience as I’m not sure I’d be brave enough for the stage.

The book has a good pace to it and there always seemed to be something happening to keep my interest. I loved the bird’s eye view of life in that period and felt fully absorbed into Vulcana’s life. Vulcana and William are real life characters and I found it very interesting to be able to Google them and find out more about them.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publisher for my copy of this book. If you’re a fan of historical fiction I highly recommend this book.

About The Author:

Rebecca F. John was born in 1986 and grew up on the south Wales coast. Her short stories have been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 4Extra. In 2015, her short story ‘The Glove Maker’s Numbers’ was shortlisted for the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award. She is the winner of the PEN International New Voices Award 2015. Her debut novel, The Haunting of Henry Twist, was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award. She lives in Swansea.